Attorney General Chris Carr alongside a group of fifteen other attorneys general have sent letters to both Apple and Google asking to update the age ratings for the app TikTok.
The app is currently listed as suitable for users 12 and up in Apple’s App Store and as “T” for “Teen” in the Google Play Store.
The attorneys general believe that the age ratings should be changed to 17 and older or “Mature.”
The letters sent to Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai outlined the deceptive nature of the TikTok age ratings.
Carr said TikTok users can search for videos that contain the following:
- Alcohol and Drug Use
- Sexual Content
- Profanity
- Songs with Explicit Lyrics
This type of content plus more can be found on the “For You” page which can be viewed from accounts registered to users as young as 13 years old.
“In today’s online environment, children are at a greater risk of encountering harmful content and predatory users,” said Carr. “We know this is a growing concern for Georgia parents, and we want to ensure that they receive honest and accurate information about an app’s age rating.”
In addition to Georgia, the attorneys general of the following states have also joined in this effort: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
